


Cream & Two Sugars

by tesselester



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Barista AU, Crushes, Developing Relationship, Dorks in Love, First Kiss, Flirting, Fluff, Friendly competition, M/M, Mutual Pining, victor is clumsy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-11
Updated: 2017-06-11
Packaged: 2018-11-12 16:49:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11165994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tesselester/pseuds/tesselester
Summary: Yuuri gets fired from his third barista job, but his life doesn't end there as his friend urges him to apply to the small cafe with the empty cream coloured walls. His co-workers aren't the friendliest, but the longer he spends working with the most beautiful employee there, the more he thinks this cafe feels like home.





	Cream & Two Sugars

**Author's Note:**

> based on [this](http://minigirllovesyou.tumblr.com/post/161551703935/coffee-shop-aus-i-need-as-someone-who-works-in-a) coffee shop au that no one asked me do to but i did anyways
> 
> this was supposed to be a quick drabble, but I got carried away. I stayed up til like 4am writing this even tho i know nothing about barista-ing.

Yuuri’s life wasn’t as successful as he’d hoped it would be. After being “let go”, as his manager had put it, for his poor performance and requesting too many sick days for his third job that year, he’d lost all hope he would ever get a steady income. 

The coffee shops he’d worked in were always packed with businessmen and women on their way to work or on their breaks. It didn’t help that they were always so upset over the slow service. It wasn’t Yuuri’s fault their computers crapped out every five minutes or the espresso machines were old and causing every problem under the sun that made Yuuri’s job unbearable. 

It wasn’t until exactly three days after he was fired and he was accompanying his friend Phichit on a shopping spree that he noticed a small local cafe was hiring called the Figure Eight Cafe. 

“You should apply,” Phichit had suggested enthusiastically, dragging him into the shop and asking the person behind the counter where to drop off a resume. 

It was a small cafe with a warm, fresh smell of croissants and coffee. The interior was mostly white, or cream as Phichit had corrected him later, and the metal wire tables were decked with tiled marble. But the rest of the shop’s walls were bare, making the place seem empty and unused.

Behind the counter, a red haired girl wearing all black was currently making a cup of coffee, “with the manager is fine,” she said. 

The next day Phichit had forced Yuuri to print out a resume and a cover letter and drop it off at the cafe. 

Exactly three days later, he received a phone call. 

 

* * *

“Hello, my name is Yuuri, I’m new. I’m here for training?” Yuuri says tentatively to the small blond boy in black at the register. 

The boy narrowly eyes Yuuri up and down before grumbling something unintelligible as he walked to the back room. 

Yuuri looks around the small store to calm the nervous fluttering in his fingers, taking in the place he would be working in for the next while, fingers crossed he wouldn’t get fired from this place, he was starting to like it, before his eyes land on the most beautiful man he’d ever seen. 

Standing behind the counter, with his back turned making coffee was a man, taller than Yuuri and more built than him, but his slender features were soft and pretty, Yuuri didn’t want to take his eyes off of him. But his hair, silver and almost glistening metallic in the afternoon sunlight that was bursting through the storefront window as he moved, perfectly framing his face, was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. 

His long, thin fingers worked smoothly and quickly over the machine, pressing buttons, wiping the steam pipe clean, taping foam on the counter. But what made Yuuri’s knees weak was watching the man’s muscles grow more prominent as he pushed the tamper down into the coffee grounds, twisting his arms, allowing Yuuri a fuller, more appreciative view of his biceps.

He’s vaguely aware of his name being called from somewhere in the distance as he watched the man pour coffee into a mug and call out a person’s name and order. But something had stepped in front of him and blocked his view. 

“Yuuri Katsuki?” The person says, “is it?”

Yuuri was shaken out of his trance as he focussed on the person in front of him, an older, less beautiful, balding man, “oh! Yes, Yuuri. I’m Yuuri. Hi—Hello.” 

“Welcome, I’m the manager, Yakov. Nice to meet you, Yuuri.”

Yuuri shook Yakov’s hand. He was already feeling scared of him. His seemingly irritated demeanor was putting Yuuri on edge and made him want to crawl under his blankets and bury himself into a hole. 

“I’ll have one of the employees train you today and we’ll see how it goes from there,” he said as he nodded toward the blond boy who had his arms crossed and was glaring daggers at Yuuri.

 _We’ll see if we like you or not,_ Yuuri could hear the statement in the undertones of his voice. His heart sank. If he was training with this intimidating, moody blond boy he surely wouldn’t get the job. 

Yakov walked away as he left the task for the kid. Yuuri just stared at him before the boy waves him to come around the counter. 

“Is the dress code to wear all black?” Yuuri starts as he walks around the counter, “‘cause I saw the other day a girl wearing all black and you’re wearing all black and he’s wear—”

“No,” the boy says, “there’s no dress code. That’s just something we like to do.” 

“Oh,” Yuuri mumbles under his breath. 

The boy points to the cash register, “do you know how to work that?” 

Yuuri glanced at the computer, the program they were using was exactly the same as the one at his last job, “yeah,” and the debit machine was familiar to him as well, “I’ve used these before.”

“Good,” the boy points at a box underneath the counter, “this is where the debit and credit receipts go, that’s the garbage, if you need more change you ask Yakov, and the extra paper is here.” 

“Okay,” Yuuri nodded along with the boy’s instructions.

“Moving on,” the boy walked over to the glass counter display, “if people want a pastry or savory item, you ask them if they want it heated and for here or to go.” 

As the boy listed off instructions, he couldn’t help but turn his head to watch the man with silver hair cleaning up the counter and the espresso machine. He looked up and caught Yuuri’s eye, blushing faintly as he smiled brightly at him. Yuuri immediately blushed beet red and focused back at the food in front of him. 

He could barely take in all the things the boy was telling him as his heart was pounding and his nerves were fluttering in his fingers and his whole body felt warmer and— oh, the man with the silver hair had sidled up to the pair with a sly smile on his beautiful face, “hi, there.” 

“H—hi.”

The man leaned forward onto the boy’s shoulders as he gazed into Yuuri’s eyes, “what’s your name?” 

“Uhm,” Yuuri stutters out, “Yuuri.” 

“Yuuri,” the man says, drawing out the syllables into a dip of his deep voice, causing Yuuri’s heart to stutter, “that’s a pretty name. Hey, you have the same name as Yuri here!” 

“Ugh, Victor, go do your job, old man,” the boy pushed the man, Victor off of his shoulders, “and stop flirting with the newbie.” 

 _Flirting._ Yuuri’s brain short circuited, was that flirting?

“It’ll be confusing having two Yuri’s working here. Maybe I’ll call you Yurio!” he says to the boy. 

“What?” Yurio yells. From the corner of the cafe Yuuri saw a man coughing as he slammed down the mug of coffee he was drinking from, giving the trio a glare. 

“Yurio, isn’t it time for your break?” Victor says suddenly with a finger pressed to his lips, pushing the boy toward the back room, “don’t worry, I’ll take over the training for you.”

Yuuri was at a loss as to what was happening. Before he knew it, Victor was standing in front of him again without Yurio in between them and with a shy smile on his face. 

“So, Yuuri,” Victor purred, “have you ever worked as a barista before?” 

Clearly Yuuri has. Has been fired from three barista jobs in the past five months, but Victor doesn’t need to know that. He knows how to make coffee and is pretty good at it too, or so some people say. What he’s not good at is talking to people, or dealing with people, or talking loudly when people can hear him. 

He wants to tell Victor all this, but his piercing blue eyes are staring at him, boring holes through the back of his mind and he panics, “no.” 

Victor’s grin grows, “then I can teach you!” 

“O—okay,” Yuuri stumbles towards the espresso machine as he follows Victor. No turning back now.

“This is an espresso machine,” Victor says simply, waving to the shiny machine on the counter. 

Yuuri smiles at him. Victor rattles through all the parts of the machine and then moves on to the different types of coffee beans the cafe uses in their drinks.

“—and this one is from Ethiopia. This one is more gentle and fragrant with floral undertones.” Victor opens the bag and brings it closer for Yuuri to smell and as he does so, Victor moves closer, brushing his arm against his shoulder. Yuuri feels warm where Victor touches him. He blinks up into Victor’s eyes and sees they’re shining in the light. He almost gasps at the sight, wanting to tuck his hair behind his ear and stare at him all day. 

He smiles bashfully at the man, placing his hands on Victors to bring the bag closer all while maintaining perfect eye contact.

The bag crunches between them as Victor squeezes it hard, it almost startles Yuuri as he’s hit with a cloud of coffee, “um, this next one is from Brazil,” he rushes to continue.

The day continues with Victor telling Yuuri about all the intricacies of coffee and how things are done at Figure Eight Cafe while Yuuri stares into his gorgeous blue eyes and Victor makes all the excuses to touch Yuuri’s arms and smile at him.

Yuuri finds himself correcting his earlier response that he has in fact worked as a barista in many cafes before. At Victor’s cute pout, Yuuri rushes to tell him that he can still train Yuuri, “I’m a little out of practice, so a little refresher wouldn’t hurt,” he says to Victor as he looks up at him through his eyelashes, tugging the hem of his sweater down subconsciously. 

Victor beams at him and makes him a latte and it’s easily the best latte he’s ever tasted in all his life. He thinks he crushes harder on this guy after tasting what he can make.

Before he knows it, his training shift is over and he’s standing in Yakov’s office waiting for the verdict. 

Yakov sits in his chair behind his cluttered desk as he eyes Yuuri up and down under the fluorescent light with a finger to his lips in thought, “when would you like to start?” 

 

* * *

Yuuri’s first shift is a Wednesday. He’s working the cash register under Yakov’s orders. It’s quiet. The only two people working today are him and the red haired girl in all black, Mila. Yurio said there was no dress code, so he wore black jeans and a fading blue sweater where the sleeves covered his hands because they were too long.

“Is it always this slow on Wednesday mornings?” Yuuri asks. 

“Yes,” Mila says, flipping through a lifestyle magazine, “ever since that new coffee shop opened up across the street, we’ve been getting less and less customers. Now, it’s just regulars who come in. I think that new place is built to look like a train station.” 

“Oh,” Yuuri says, wiping down the counter, “that’s cool.” 

They don’t get another customer for at least the next hour. 

Yuuri spends most of his shift trying to remember the exact colour of Victor’s eyes when the sun hits it at the right angle. 

 

* * *

The next time Yuuri works is Friday. This time he’s working with Yurio. The boy is less intimidating than the first time he met him, seeming more childlike than anything. He likes to make fun of people that place complicated orders and get upset when the shop doesn’t have something they ask for. 

It seems Yurio is warming up to Yuuri after spending a day with him, even showing him tricks he’s acquired over the months working there. He finds out from Yurio that Victor has been working at the cafe since he can remember, even before any of the others started working there. Yurio thinks Victor may even be the first ever employee, which is why Yakov lets him work whenever he wants.

Yuuri’s working the register again. He’s itching to get his hands on that machine. Everytime he hears the machine creak with pressure or the steam pipe frothing milk, he gets a pang of jealousy at the person working it. 

“Can I have a medium latte?” The short lady in front of him asks, bringing him back down to earth. 

“One medium latte to go!” He calls out to Yurio.

The sun shines through the windows as he watches people go in and out of the coffee shop across the street. He can’t help but hope his next shift is with Victor. 

 

* * *

His next shift is with the other employee, Christophe, the tall handsome one with long eyelashes that always seem to flutter like a butterfly when he winks at Yuuri.

As Chris began making a customer’s coffee, Yuuri watched as he worked, making mental notes about how much milk Chris poured, much more than Yuuri would. And how long he frothed the milk, much shorter than Yuuri would. And how he did the latte art, which always seemed to come out particularly more phallic than the others. He couldn’t help but wonder how the drink tasted and if it was better than what Yuuri could do.

Chris placed the cup onto the counter and Yuuri watched as the woman took a sip from the almost overflowing liquid. She smiled as she tasted the coffee, seemingly pleased with the results, before she placed a lid on top and left with a thank you. 

Yuuri looked away, not wanting to be caught as a creeper staring at Chris work.

 Yuuri was folding up the receipts as he felt a hand snake around his waist, he jumped, “Yuuri,” Chris crooned in his ear. 

“Chris,” he yelps. 

“You’re so quiet,” he smiles at him, “but you seem like a party boy. You are, aren’t you? The quiet ones always make the best party boys.” 

Yuuri clutches the receipts in his hand closer to his chest, “I—um.”

Chris smiles at him and slaps his ass, “I’m only playing around, Yuuri. Loosen up, this place is dead,” he chuckled.

Yuuri feels just a little bit less tense during work, although he avoids Chris and his advances and practically runs to the refrigerator in the back when Chris asks him to go clubbing that night.

 

* * *

Yuuri doesn’t see Victor for another two weeks and the longer he goes without gazing into his beautiful blue eyes the more he fumbles with handling money and cleaning up and being a good employee. 

“You’re too slow,” Yurio pushes him aside as he’s wiping down the counter at the end of the day, “let me do it.” 

It’s raining outside and it’s dark. He had hoped Yakov would close up early due to the lack of customers on the dreary afternoon, but he was never so lucky. So instead, him and Yurio were holed up in the empty store, with nothing to do but clean.

Yuuri steps aside, rolling the hem of his shirt in his fingers, and watches the teenager take over the simple task.

Just as Yurio is finished wiping the counter and smiling at Yuuri, showing him how fast he’s done it, the bell on the door rings loudly and in walks none other than Victor. But he’s not alone. Behind him walks a large brown poodle, fur soaked to the bone and his tongue panting between his lips. He shakes his body back and forth and the water splashes on the floors, windows, and all the furniture, leaving dark, wet-dog scented stains behind. 

Yuuri’s heart jumped at the sight of Victor in all his glowing beauty, but his eyes absolutely lit up at the sight of the scraggly dog that ran up to him and nearly knocked him over as he greeted Yuuri with his two front paws on his shoulders and a slobbering wet kiss. 

“Yurio, I’m freezing,” Victor says as he shakes off the rain from his large umbrella, shucks off his coat and backpack and chucks it down onto a nearby table, “can you make me a hot chocolate? I just came to pick up my paycheck.” 

The dog trotted over to a table near the milk and sugar counter and made himself comfortable, curled up around the legs.

“Hey, you idiot! We just cleaned the floors!” He bickers at the man. 

Victor looks up to see Yurio fuming as he yanks the mop from the cupboard behind the back door and stomps to the front to mop for the third time that day.

But Victor doesn’t pay the angry teenager any mind as his eyes are only looking at Yuuri, “hi, Yuuri.” 

“Hello,” Yuuri says. 

“I didn’t know you work today?” Victor’s head tilts to the side as he gives Yuuri a warm smile. 

Yuuri can feel his cheeks flush, “yeah, I’m still on my trial period, so I don’t have a set schedule, but it seems to be Monday’s, Wednesday’s and Friday’s.”

“Shame,” Victor scratches his head, “I only work on Thursdays.” 

“Oh,” Yuuri blushes harder.

Victor took a step forward unaware of the mop at his ankles as he went flying forward, a loud unceremonious yelp came from his throat as his body hit the floor with a hard thud. His dog jumped up to his feet and started licking Victor’s face. 

“Ow,” Victor whimpers.

Yuuri rushes around the counter to kneel at Victor’s side, “are you okay?” 

“Yeah,” Victor attempts to hide the pain in his voice, but it came out as a cute squeak. He cleared his throat and says, “yeah, no, I’m fine. I’m okay, I’m—”

Yuuri grabs his hand and placed the other on his back to help him back to his feet. They were pressed face to face with their hands linked in between their bodies. Victor’s lips looked so soft from up close, he felt a strong urge to reach up and press his thumb to the centre of his pout. When Victor moved closer to him, he found his lungs had stopped working and his pulse was racing.

“Stop flirting with the newbie, Victor!” Yurio shouts through the door to the back room. 

Yuuri jumps from his arms and backed up into something soft and wet. 

“This is my dog,” Victor said, “Makkachin.” 

“Hello, Makkachin,” Yuuri crouched to be the same height as Makkachin to pet the dog. 

Makkachin was a very happy dog, his tail wagging back and forth at an alarming pace. He was quite taken with this dog if he was being honest. Makkachin leaned forward, placing his front paws on Yuuri’s shoulders and licking his face clean. 

“Yuuri,” Victor said, in all his grace and beauty, he was blushing like a teenager in front of the cute teacher, “can you make me a hot chocolate? I think Yurio is avoiding me.”

Yuuri sets out to make the hot chocolate. It’s simple; just powder and hot water, swirl on some whipped cream, drizzle on the caramel, and sprinkle it with cocoa powder. Put an extra chocolate wafer in it and voila! 

“One hot chocolate for Victor!” Yuuri calls out as he placed the mug on the counter. 

He looks up and finds that Victor is gazing up at him with his head in his hands. His sparkling eyes cause Yuuri’s heart to palpitate. 

Victor takes a sip of the hot drink and when he puts the mug down with a surprised smile, there on the tip on his nose and the bow of his lips is a spot of whipped cream. 

Yuuri hides a laugh behind his sleeved hand.

Victor looks up at him with innocently wide eyes, “what?”

Still chuckling behind his hand, he points to his own nose and lips, indicating that he has something there.

“Do I have something on my face?” Victor wipes his face but completely misses the spot. 

“Here,” Yuuri grabs the towel that was left on the counter and brings it up to Victor’s face. Victor stands still as Yuuri wipes his nose and lips with the most gentle and slow press of the damp cloth. Yuuri gulps, his eyes fixed to his plump lips as he brings his hand away from his face. 

Victor’s eyes seem to be sparkling in the harsh light of the cafe, he lets out a slow breath as he watches Yuuri. They stand facing each other across the counter. Their moment is interrupted when Makkachin makes a soft borf from his place in the corner. 

“Sit with me while I drink this?” Victor asks, a blush high on his pale cheeks. 

Yuuri would’ve said yes to anything Victor asks him to do if he keeps looking up at him with those alluring eyes. 

They sit at a table by the window, chatting for hours as the sky grows darker and the rain slowly lets up and Yuuri’s heart grows bigger and his laughter grows louder with every story Victor tells him. Their eyes never leave each others except for when there is a brief silence and Yuuri cannot help but blush at the intense gaze Victor is giving him, so he looks out the window at the cafe across the street that closed up early due to the rain. 

“This hot chocolate is really good, Yuuri,” Victor says, “better than how the other’s make it. What’s in it?” 

“Oh, just powder and milk.”

“It tastes like magic. I’d like to see what wonders you can do with the coffee machine,” Victor winks. 

Yuuri almost has a heart attack, but he manages to keep his cool and answers, “I haven’t been able to make anything yet, Yakov only tells me to work the register.” 

“Well then, Yakov needs to try this hot chocolate, he’ll be crazy not to let you make coffee after tasting what you can do.” 

After Victor finishes his drink and they’ve exhausted all conversation for the night, Victor announces he’s going to see Yavok and for Yuuri to wait for him. 

 _I’m not going anywhere,_ Yuuri thinks, _my shift isn’t over yet._

Victor returns and promises to walk him home at the end of his shift. He’ll wait.

In twenty-three minutes, they’ve closed up the shop and Victor follows Yuuri home with Makkachin closely behind. 

The more time he spends with Victor the more his heart flutters, and the more he feels confident in himself. He’s had an instant crush the moment he laid eyes on him in the cafe and that extends past looks. Victor is kind, fun, and lighthearted, but he gets this far off look when he’s not talking about the shenanigans he gets up to with Chris or the love he has for Makkachin. The small crease between his brows are quickly remedied when Yuuri laughs at the simplest joke or when his eyes crinkle with the softest smile. 

Victor is a mystery to Yuuri. He’s afraid he might shock himself if he gets too close. So he stays at a distance, pining from two feet apart. He stutters out a rapid goodbye and a see you later when Victor tries to lean in for a sweet kiss on the cheek and practically runs away at the first sign of nerves. 

This feeling is new to Yuuri and he can’t quite put his finger on what it is.

He shows up to work the next monday and is met with the sight of Victor grinning brightly at him from behind the counter. And the well trained Makkachin wagging his tail at him.

“Hi, Yuuri!” Victor beams, “I asked Yakov to switch my schedules around! I’m working Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays now!” 

Yuuri nearly has a heart attack then in the middle of the threshold of the cafe. At least Makkachin would be a soft pillow if he collapses forward.

 

* * *

Yuuri is thrilled to learn that Yakov has decided to let him work the espresso machine. It came as a surprise, but he finds out later from Mila that Victor had advised the manager to let Yuuri make coffee. 

Yuuri’s heart swells at the news. And he’s on the machine in an instant, at first he has to remind himself of the skills he had forgone for weeks, but quickly regains muscle memory. He’s making the best coffee he’s ever made in his life. 

All his customers remark how lovely his coffee is and how the store must’ve changed management, to Yuuri’s knowledge, Yakov’s always been the manager.

 When the morning get busier (Makkachin kept in Yakov’s office), him and Victor work side by side, gently scooting around each other, hands flying across the machine, overlapping as they grabbed cartons of milk or syrup. Every time their hands accidentally touched, Yuuri grows less aware of Victor being in such close proximity that it almost becomes easier to work beside him. He gets less conscious of the beautiful man standing shoulder to shoulder to him and more comfortable with Victor. 

By the end of the rush hour, Yuuri and Victor are practically dancing around each other and laughing as they do so. They’ve found an ease between them. 

He almost doesn’t want Wednesday to roll around which means he has to work with Yurio, the grumpy teen. 

He would trade all his days if he could spend more time with Victor and his dog.

 

* * *

Word gets around that Figure Eight Cafe’s coffee has gotten a lot better. The business is booming. Yuuri wonders if this is normal, to which Chris replies that it’s not. He’s starting to feel nervous, he can’t deal with a lot of people at once and there’s a long line at the register that ends at the door. 

If Yuuri works a little slower than normal that day, he blames it on the late night, but it was the shock of seeing the cafe so busy all of a sudden. He wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of customers that his nerves were preventing him from functioning properly and Chris wasn’t helping with his unabashed flirting. 

He later finds out that customers had heard about the new cute employee that makes the best coffee in town and they wanted to have a look and taste for themselves. He was shocked to find this out. Where was the praise at his other three jobs? 

“You didn’t know it, but Leo told me customers really liked you at The Grind,” Phichit had told him that night. 

Then his last three managers had been pricks. 

 

* * *

Friday rolls around, Chris had called in sick and he’s thankful for Victor’s presence. He somehow seems to calm Yuuri down and the rest of the world seems to disappear. The only person that matters is Victor and he’s chuckling at the way Yuuri makes a face when he sees the long line that spans the length of the cafe. 

“Everyone is here for you, Yuuri,” Victor says through a smirk. 

Yuuri chances a glance back at the line and sees that most of the patrons, especially the women, have been watching him and Victor work. 

“Are you sure they’re not here for you?” Yuuri smiles. 

“Why would they be here for me? You’re the star of the show,” Victor leans in and winks leaving Yuuri paralysed before the espresso machine. 

There’s one particular customer Yuuri can’t help but overhear that he’s in a hurry and it spurs Yuuri on while also raising his anxiety level. 

Victor and Yuuri’s hands fly rapidly over each other. Yuuri’s pouring coffee while Victor is bending to retrieve the milk from underneath Yuuri. Victor reaches over Yuuri’s head for the teas as Yuuri steams the milk. 

There’s a line of cups waiting for them on the counter and they take one at a time. Victor wraps his arm around Yuuri’s back, grabbing the cloth and Yuuri blushes. Victor bends to retrieve the milk from underneath Yuuri again and takes his time picking up the cap he dropped in between Yuuri’s legs, Yuuri glances down to where Victor’s hands are and is met with Victor’s playful smile. Yuuri blushes harder and feels his knees get weak, he almost drops the scalding coffee he’s holding all over himself, and Victor chuckles lightheartedly at Yuuri’s flustered appearance.

Yuuri is swirling whipped cream onto a drink and almost sprays it everywhere when Victor steps behind him and wraps both arms around him as he reaches for a lid and straw. Yuuri can feel Victor’s hair against his cheek and can almost feel the vibrations when Victor hums a soft “hi” in his ear. 

He clamps a hand onto the edge of the counter to stop himself from falling back into Victor’s arms. He hears Victor chuckle and then he’s back at the register where he’d taken his warmth with him. 

When the rush hour is over, Yuuri collapses into one of the cafe chairs, Victor across from him, a coffee made by Yuuri in his hand and Makkachin at their feet now that the crowd had died down.

“We make a good team,” Victor says after a sip of coffee. 

“Can you believe Chris bailed on one of the busiest days?” Yuuri says. 

Victor shakes his head, “he was hungover from partying too hard last night.” 

“What was last night?” Yuuri asks, curious as to why Chris would be partying on a thursday night.

Victor’s gaze is serious as he says, “thursday,” confirming Yuuri’s curiosity; Chris is a party animal. 

They stare at each other for a moment before bursting out with laughter. 

When there’s a lull in the afternoon, Yuuri scours the back room, cleaning it up and organizing the old mess when he finds a small framed painting. Yuuri thinks it looks pretty and decides to place it next to the milk and sugar table where there just so happens to be a nail perfectly centered on the wall. 

Victor stops wiping down one of the tables to admire it. He smiles at Yuuri and gives him a thumbs up and Yuuri thinks it makes the place look just a bit more welcoming.

 

* * *

Two weeks later, Mila calls in sick. Mila never calls in sick. 

“Oh god, here we go,” Yuuri says as they’re flipping over chairs to get ready for opening. 

The shop had gotten much more pretty as Yuuri had found more paintings in the back and hung them up. He had even found a few photographs of the shop’s exterior and of Yakov when he was younger—with more hair and less wrinkles. 

One day, Yakov had walked out into the shop front and paused in his path to look at the wall, now covered in paintings and photographs. He shot an accusing glance to Yurio who pointed to a nervous Yuuri. Yakov had relaxed after a few seconds, pursing his lips and nodding before he walked back to his office. 

With a sigh of relief and a smile from Yurio, Yuuri felt like he was starting to belong, even when he felt the large crowds that came every morning should’ve brought with them an impending anxiety attack, it meant he got to be closer to Victor.

Victor has a glint in his eye, “we can do it, Yuuri! Just you and me, together.” 

 _Well, when you put it like that,_ Yuuri’s heart thumps.

“I bet I can make more drinks faster than you can,” Yuuri plays. 

Victor looks affronted, his hand on his chest, but there’s that glint in his eye as he grins at Yuuri, “you’re on.” 

They shake on it. 

They’ve set up a small area on the special of the day board for their tally. As soon as the first wave of people arrive, they’re ready for battle. 

Like clockwork, they work side by side completely in sync, dancing around each other like a routine. Their arms brush often and they find themselves reaching in front, behind, and around the other. Their eyes meet in between tasks and it’s sometimes playful, sometimes fleeting, too quick to catch any emotion, and sometimes Yuuri will see Victor’s crease in between his eyebrows upon looking at Yuuri’s expression. This usually happens when Yuuri is feeling particularly frustrated or rushed. But somehow Victor’s reassuring smile brings him back. 

At the end of the day, their tally is almost equally matched. But Yuuri won by a whopping three points. 

Victor accepts defeat with a smile and shining eyes, but it doesn’t stop there. Victor eyes the dirty dishes in the back and gives Yuuri a mischievous look. 

They’re the last two in the shop, the washing hadn’t been done yet. 

Yuuri knows exactly what Victor is hinting at with just a look. 

It takes them two seconds of eye contact before they’re racing to the back, pulling each other back by the waist in order to be the first and fastest to clean up.

The mugs and plates go in the dishwasher, but Yakov insists that the cutlery be washed by hand. 

When Victor sees Yuuri has washed more forks than he has, he splashes Yuuri out of desperation. 

“Ah!” Yuuri ducks behind his arm as he’s attacked by the soapy water, “that’s cheating, Victor!” 

Yuuri gives up and starts splashing him back and even takes the soapy suds and runs it in Victor’s hair which elicits a loud gasp and a “you did not just do that.” 

“I did,” Yuuri stands, his sleeves and apron soaked. Victor picks up a cup and fills it with the dirty water from the sink, standing across from Yuuri, daring to dump it on top of his head. 

“Victor,” Yuuri warns, “don’t you dare.” 

“Too late,” Victor says. He steps forward slowly, backing Yuuri into the wall, cup still in his hand. 

Yuuri hits the wall and his heart starts pounding, he hides his nerves with a cheeky grin and brings his hand up to coat Victor’s hair in more of the suds. 

Victor unceremoniously dumps the water onto Yuuri’s head. The water drips down his shoulders and his back, running down his spine and he shivers. 

His mouth is caught wide, disbelief has taken over him before he tackles Victor to the ground, messing his hair up even further. 

They’re rolling around on the wet floor, laughter filling the room. 

Victor rolls on top of Yuuri, pinning him to the spot. They’ve calmed down some and are gazing into each other’s eyes. 

Yuuri’s heart is pounding a tattoo against his chest that he’s sure Victor can hear it. The nerves in his fingertips and toes light on fire and his breath stutters. His lips part as he sucks in a nervous breath. 

Victor’s eyes flick down to his lips as he licks his own. There’s so much energy buzzing between them and Yuuri thinks if he moves, he might set off a chain of events that will either make or break this moment. 

“Victor,” Yuuri whispers in the space between their bodies. 

Victor’s eyes flick back up to Yuuri’s and he melts. In that moment, all he can see is blue and silver, and all the colours that make up Victor and all that Victor is. 

He smiles up at the silver haired man and in that moment Victor surges forward and captures Yuuri’s lips with his own. And he’s kissing him with the gentle care that is Victor’s being. And Yuuri kisses back. His fingers itching to grab hold of Victor’s hair and push him deeper. His nerves bloom, his lungs stop working and all he can feel is the soft lips of the man on top of him. 

Victor shifts so that he can cup Yuuri’s face in the palm of his hand. And Yuuri brings his hand up to Victor’s neck, feeling the damp hairs at the nape. 

He feels Victor’s tongue against his lips and he parts his lips wider as the kiss gets deeper and heavier. He lets out a soft moan into Victor’s mouth and they part for a breath. 

They’re both panting as they admire the wreckage they’ve left on the other person. Yuuri smiles at the mess of Victor’s hair, and Victor’s eyes crinkle with a grin. He leans back in and they kiss some more and explore each other’s mouths. 

Yuuri pushes at Victor’s arm and flips them over so that he’s straddling Victor. He leans in for a quick, sweet kiss, pinning Victor’s arms above his head. He parts just slightly so he can look into Victor’s eyes and whisper, “I still won.” 

Victor makes a face and pushes them to their original position. Yuuri laughs as Victor pins him to the floor. He plants kisses all over his face, “we’re both winners.” 

“No, I won,” he says breathless as Victor kisses down his neck, “you cheate—”

Victor kisses him again, “stop talking, more kissing.” 

If Yurio sends them an angry text complaining about the lack of clean cutlery the next day, both Victor and Yuuri pretend they don’t know anything about it.

 

* * *

Three months later, Yuuri is pinning a small polaroid photograph in the small space between the paintings. It’s of all of them behind the counter with Yakov standing proudly behind the group. Victor and Chris, the tallest, flank Mila, Yuuri and Yurio in the middle. Victor has his arms wrapped around his boyfriend as he gazes down at the smiling man in his arms. Makkachin is sitting tall in front of the counter, with his tongue poking out of his mouth, dripping drool onto the floor in front of him. 

They look like a happy family. And the cafe is filled with warmth. It stands out amongst the paintings and photographs as something intrinsically them. It belongs in their little sanctuary on the corner of the street. 

Every morning patrons fill the cafe and crowd around the counter watching Yuuri and Victor make eyes at each other as they work effortlessly together. And every morning he finds himself itching to come to work to see Victor’s face smiling at him as he makes coffee one after the other. 

Yuuri feels more and more welcome in this family and he can’t help but feel like he belongs. 

**Author's Note:**

> so, i hope you enjoyed that! i really liked this au and couldn't resist writing this. 
> 
> thanks for reading! i love comments and kudos!
> 
> come find me on [tumblr](http://tesselester.tumblr.com/)


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